The eleven-year-old thalidomide war (TIME, Jan. 22) may finally be over. This month the giant Distillers Co. Ltd. made a new offer of more than $50 million in compensation to the parents of the 398 British children who were born deformed after their mothers took the tranquilizer. The parents are expected to accept the settlement—one of the largest multipayouts in medical history.
Distillers, which marketed thalidomide in Britain through a pharmaceutical subsidiary until 1961, has agreed to pay $12,500 to each set of parents in consideration of their suffering and expenses. A lump sum of $15 million will be distributed to 340...
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